Fighting From the Inside
by Short Work
Summary: When woken from her cryogenic sleep, Jill can do nothing but fight. Fight against the serum, fight to escape captivity, and fight against the man that was once her captain.
1. Chapter 1

_He who fights with monsters should look to it that he himself does not become a monster._ -Nietzsche

Jill wasn't sure if everything was numb, or if everything hurt so much she just couldn't tell the difference. Considering her consciousness was completely unbearable, she figured the sensation she was drowning in was that of searing pain rather than numbness. But was she really even conscious? She couldn't tell if her eyes were open or not. She only knew she couldn't see, and couldn't feel herself blinking. She could only hope that her eyes were closed.

She had to start figuring things out, if only to focus on something other than the pain. She could hear, of that much she was certain. But the sound came from far away, as an inconstant static of noise from underwater. She tried to concentrate on that sound, tried to identify what it was. Wind? Where was she? How did she get there?

A second noise arrived, a muffled crunching sound. It grew louder at a rhythmic pace, and Jill felt that she should know what it was. Crunching...moving...walking... They were footsteps. The sound stopped, and though it had sounded as if they were a million miles away, she suspected those noisy feet were right beside her. Confirming her suspicions, she felt something on her neck. A hand maybe. She was being choked! No... No, she was just having her pulse checked. Satisfied that she at least had something resembling a pulse, no matter how week she had no doubt it may be, the hand was removed. For a moment, the world was still.

Suddenly, a kick was delivered to her chest. It could very well have been a gentle nudge, but she now knew that all her ribs were broken, and the pain was excruciating. Reacting in a way she didn't realize she was capable of at the moment, she cried out. But what would have been an anguished scream came out as a strangled gurgle, as a line of blood spilled from her mouth when she opened it. There was no question now; Jill was dying. She couldn't remember what had happened to lead her to such an agonizing death, but now she could only hope that its coming was swift to end her suffering.

But instead, more pain shot through her as she felt her body being moved. She was lifted off of the ground, and felt her head hang back unsupported, vaguely aware of the blood drifting back down her face. The world began to sway subtly but nonetheless painfully. Someone was carrying her. To try to save her? To grant her release? To get her away from here, was all that she knew. Struggling to summon every last ounce of energy she still possessed, she managed to speak one hoarse whisper of a word before she finally passed out completely.

"Thanks."

She didn't know what lay ahead of her, but she knew anything had to be better than the pain she was in right now.

It wouldn't be long before Jill realized the folly of that conclusion.

* * *

Jill hadn't a clue as to how long she had been out, but she suspected it had been a very long time from the effort it took to simply open her eyes. It wasn't made any easier by the horrifically bright light that was aimed directly at her face. She was still lying down, and found herself dressed in a long hospital gown. Her first reaction was to sit up and find whatever doctor had miraculously treated her before she realized she had been restrained. Her wrists were cuffed in braces attached to the examining table, and her feet were trapped the same way in a single brace around both her ankles.

This was a very bad sign.

She struggled for a moment to try to pull her hands out of the braces, but she knew how handcuffs worked from her years on the force. Short of snapping the bones in her hand, there was no way she was getting out of them without some sort of lock pick, and she suspected she would need to be able to throw a punch against whoever had her bound in the first place if she were to break free. With her hands held firmly in place, she tried to pull her feet free to no avail. It wasn't the first time in her life Jill had wished she had smaller feet. She was in the middle of twisting her leg in a painful manner to try to make maneuvering easier when she heard a voice that made her blood run cold.

"Trying to escape Jill? Not even you, the master of unlocking, will be able to get out of those cuffs."

_No..._

The memories of what had happened before she'd found herself here quickly returned to her. She remembered they were two against one yet still utterly outmatched, fighting against inhuman reflexes with about as much success as a pair of mice have against a cat. It was an impossible battle, and in a desperate attempt to save Chris's life, Jill had flung herself against Wesker and out the window to the harrowing drop beyond.

She was frozen in place, her mind racing through what might had happened in the time since her fall, and what would happen if she remained captive here. She stared up at the ceiling away from the bright light, her breathing shallow, as she heard the deliberate footsteps make their way towards her. Before she knew it, she was staring up at a dual reflection of herself in a pair of dark sunglasses, accompanied by a cruel smirk.

"Wesker," she breathed, the disgust in her voice clearly evident. _Wesker_ was the one who saved her. And she would bet her life it wasn't out of the good of his heart. "Why?" she asked. Though a million questions ran through her head, she didn't expect to get a solid answer for any of them.

"Revenge," he replied simply, his face a mask of stone.

_Revenge against who?_ Jill wondered. Through she supposed it didn't matter. Wesker may have had a personal vendetta against Chris, but she knew he'd relish the opportunity to do harm to herself as well. There was no love lost between any of the ex-S.T.A.R.S. members and their traitorous captain. Wesker began drawing liquid from a glass lab bottle with a syringe.

"You're going to experiment on me." It wasn't a question, Jill already knew the answer.

"Going to?" The cruel smirk returned to his face. "My dear Jill, I already have." Jill's mouth dropped in a silent gasp at his response. Wesker chuckled softly at her horrified expression. "Yes, you've been in suspended animation for over a year, furthering my cause far more than any other subject."

"Furthering your cause? You've used me for B.O.W. research?" Jill's stomach tied into knots at the thought. She had spent years fighting bioterrorism and the creation of B.O.W.s. Knowing that she had been an instrument in their development tore her up inside.

"It was quite an accident I assure you. I originally had a simple gruesome transformation in store for you, but you've proven to be a bit more... resilient than I had originally anticipated." Tapping the air bubbles out of the syringe, he continued. "Though I suppose I shouldn't be surprised. After all, you thwarted both me and the tyrant in your escape from the Arklay mansion facility, as well as single handedly taking out the Nemesis in your flight from an infested Raccoon City." He inspected the syringe a final time, assured that it was prepped and ready to go. "You've shown a remarkable affinity for survival, Jill."

The smile on his face unnerved her, and she looked away with a petulant glance. The only thing she wanted Wesker to compliment her on was her ability to throw him out of windows. "This," he said, presenting the syringe to regain her attention, "is P30, an advanced super-soldier serum. If it works correctly, you should gain extraordinary strength and speed... and become completely obedient." Jill hesitated, the ball of dread in her stomach tightening to the point of making her nauseous.

"_If_ it works correctly? ...and if it doesn't?" she asked. Wesker simply shrugged.

"We've tried far more potent formulas on you, only to have your immune system brush it away as if it were nothing more than the common cold," he replied, gripping her arm and and injecting the pale pink serum. "In fact, I'd expect this to only take hold for about half an hour, if at all."

Jill refused to give him the gratification of seeing her wince from the injection, so instead she just kept her eyes trained on his sunglasses in a threatening glare. Slowly though, as the serum took hold, her face relaxed into an expressionless mask. Wary of the possibility that she could be faking, he unlocked the restraints from her hands and feet and held out his hand. She sat up, her motions a bit mechanical at first from lack of movement, then graceful as she accepted his hand and stood up. Wesker gave a pleased shake of the head.

"Nothing quite like scientific progress..." He ignored his immense gratification for a moment and thought of some arbitrary thing for her to do against her will.

"Stand on one leg."

Jill stood on one leg.

"Splendid, you may put your leg down now." Wesker said smugly. "Now for the pecking order of things. I am your supreme commander, your generalissimo, and your lord and master. You will do battle with any and all that oppose me, and will serve those I assign you to. You will remember all of this every time you are injected with P30 and will act accordingly. Do you understand?"

Jill gave a single determined nod.

"Good. Your first assignment will be to test your heightened reflexes and skills." Wesker retrieved an indigo leather garment off of a nearby table. "This is your battle suit, it's been custom fitted to your form exactly so that your movements won't be hindered." He gestured over to a gauze changing screen in the corner of the lab. "Get changed quickly so we can get started, there's no telling how long the serum will last." Handing her the suit, he turned back to the lab station and began prepping a second dose.

When he heard the sound of shuffling clothing behind him, he paused, and raised his head from his work. Keeping his feet planted firmly on the ground, he turned slightly to steal a glance at the indoctrinated woman, only to find that she had begun undressing right there in the middle of the lab instead of behind the changing screen. He regarded her cooly for a moment, until she had finished unlacing the hospital gown and stripped down to a plain black bra and panties. She set down the gown on the examining table and was reaching for the battle suit when Wesker spoke.

"Stop."

Jill turned around and stood at attention, abandoning the garment.

"Step forward."

She took two steps away from the table, standing out in the center of the room. Both stood there in silence for a moment, neither moving, until Wesker slowly walked over and began circling her.

"Hmm, interesting," he began. "It seems your newfound loyalty has also placed an unwavering trust in your commander. This could have some very useful consequences." He stopped behind her, and placed his gloved hands on her bare shoulders. "Though I can't help but delight in the irony of you exhibiting yourself to someone you so greatly despise." A small grin played upon his lips as he leaned in to whisper in her ear.

"Are you still awake inside there Jill? Are you aware of the situation you have put yourself in entirely of your own doing?" he asked cruelly, slowly running his hands down her arms. "Is your sense of humiliation still intact?" He noticed that she was shivering ever so slightly at his touch.

"Trembling..." he muttered, the amusement in his voice clearly evident. "What could that be caused by I wonder? Anger or fear..." He dropped his hands and walked back in front of her. "Or maybe..."

"Anticipation..." He offered a suggestive quirk of the brow. "We've known each other a long time you and I. You were always such a dutiful S.T.A.R.S. member, never disrespectful of your captain. Perhaps old allegiances die hard." He returned one hand to her shoulder and resumed circling her, slowly trailing his fingers across her back. "But maybe there's something more playing through your mind here. Something you'd rather forget." Wesker let the notion hang in the air for a bit, his hand lingering at the nape of her neck.

"So Jill? Is a long tucked away fantasy of the team captain returning to you against your will? Alone together, late at night in the S.T.A.R.S. office, finding new uses for the office furniture..." Walking back in front of her, he searched her blank face for any sort of reaction.

"Or maybe you're seething with rage only held in check by the serum," he said, his amusement depleted. "It doesn't really matter does it? You're bound to my will either way." He offered the inert woman a resigned smile. "But don't worry Jill, I won't do anything unsavory to you. It would be degrading..." He began to walk away, but paused when he was beside her.

"...for me," he added, walking past her to pick up her battle suit. His stoic expression now firmly in place, he handed the outfit to her and said, "Get dressed, we have tests to run."

* * *

**My first posted fic! Though certainly not my first ever written.**

**As usual, Resident Evil and all its characters are property of Capcom.**


	2. Chapter 2

Wesker waited for Jill to pull on the battle suit, watching her passively as she adjusted the clingy fabric to her form. When she was done, he gestured wordlessly for her to follow him, leading her out of the lab and down a sterile gray hallway. When they at last came to a more industrial, open-aired room, he ordered her to stay put and took leave. A short time later, he appeared behind an elevated observation window situated high up on one side of the room. He pressed a button on a command console, and a side door opened, allowing three combat majini to enter the room.

"Jill," he said, speaking into the microphone. "You are to kill these men and then await further instructions." With not a moment's hesitation, she charged across the room at a blinding speed, jumped high in the air, and kicked the first majini in the head. Its skull shattered instantly, and what was left of the body fell to the floor in a crumpled heap. Wesker smiled in satisfaction at the display.

The door to the observatory box opened behind him, and Excella stepped into the room. When Wesker didn't even look up at her entrance, she made her way over to the window to catch a glimpse of what so firmly held his attention. She recognized the woman currently slamming a majini into a guardrail as Jill Valentine, and figured that he must be testing the P30 serum.

"I didn't know you were the type to play with dolls, Albert," Excella said, crossing her arms. The second majini's ribcage had collapsed from Jill's repeated kicking, and it fell dead on top of the final majini that was standing behind it. She dashed over, and crushed its head beneath her boot before there was any chance for struggle. Having dispatched all of her opponents, Jill made her way back to the middle of the room and awaited further orders.

"I'd say she's more of an action figure, wouldn't you agree?" Wesker said smugly, very pleased with the results of the first test. Excella responded with a scoff. They both turned their attention back to the window at the sound of Jill crying out in agony. She gripped her head with her hands and fell to her knees, struggling with herself. Wesker brought up his wrist and checked his watch. "Hmm, seventeen minutes, that's not long. Something will have to be done about that if P30 is going to be effective." He pulled a syringe out of his pocket, then took off his coat and set it aside. "But for now, another dose is in order." He left the room without another word, and Exella simply watched the woman below writhe in horror.

Jill gritted her teeth, and made an attempt to stand when Wesker entered the room. The serum fought back however, and she fell prostrate to the ground, clawing at the floor desperately to try to regain control. "Now's not the time for worship, Jill," Wesker said, walking up to her. "Though I appreciate the sentiment."

"You...gnngh...bastard..." she managed to choke out, breathing heavily from the effort.

"Stand up," he ordered. Jill was a having hard enough time just keeping her consciousness at the surface, but a direct order was impossible to resist. She climbed to her feet, her pained expression still in place as she stood face to face with the man who was tormenting her so.

"Good girl," he said, pulling her closer by her arm and injecting her in the neck with the second dose. "Excella," he shouted up to the observatory box as he went to dispose of the syringe. "Send out the next round of majini."

"You'd have a better view of the results from up here you know," she replied through the microphone.

"I'll be joining the fun this time," Wesker said, more to Jill than Excella as he walked back over to her. "I'd like to see how she fares... as a partner." The serum was already starting to kick back in, as reflected in Jill's resigned expression. Excella stared silently down at him for a moment with her hands on her hips. When Wesker looked back up at her expectantly, she hit the button on the console, sending fifteen majini pouring into the room, more than a few of them armed with stun rods.

"All of you," he called, waving them over with one hand on his hip. "Your objective is to defeat us by any means necessary. Come on!" As the mob started advancing on them, he turned and said, "Your job is to protect me Jill, understood?" Her response was a nod of unquestioning devotion, and she immediately darted off to take on one of their opponents. She did a cartwheel flip over the foremost majini, avoiding the stun rod to grab its head with her legs and snap its neck. Retrieving the stun rod from the corpse, she crouched low to avoid the grasp of a second majini and swung up hard with her newly acquired weapon, reducing the number of foes to thirteen. As she retreated backwards towards Wesker, a majini threw a grenade at her feet, which she quickly scooped up and tossed back, the explosion killing three more enemies before it hit the ground.

"Very efficent," Wesker remarked as Jill returned to a guarding stance before him. "At this rate you'll finish them off in mere minutes." He grabbed her by the shoulder and moved her aside, rolling up his sleeves. "Change of plans. We're going to fight the rest of them together, but instead of acting as my bodyguard, you are to serve as my weapon. Let's go!" He charged forward and dove into the fray, grabbing one of the majini by the neck. Tossing the stun rod at a majini's head, Jill slid underneath them and sprang upward with its dangling legs in her grasp, snapping its spine. Dropping the body, Wesker then grabbed Jill by her arms and flipped her over his head to land behind him, at which point she pushed off of his back to launch her foot into another majini's face.

Excella watched the display with great interest, attempting to gauge the threat that Jill presented to her. Their fighting was oddly synchronized, considering the history between them was one of mutual loathing. Supposedly they were at one time allies though, before Wesker shed his human skin and left his old life behind. Excella couldn't help but wonder what their interactions were like when the two worked together in Raccoon City. If the fight taking place below was any indication, then they meshed perfectly well. It was not a good sign for her own plans. Excella wanted to ascend as high as she possibly could, and that meant positioning herself as Wesker's partner. She wasn't sure how much faith he placed in someone essentially under a form of mind control, but Jill's continued presence meant that Excella's role could be usurped.

When Wesker felled the last majini, he was caught by surprise with a swift kick in the chest. Jill did not stop attacking once all the designated opponents were defeated, but instead redirected her fight towards Wesker. She unleashed a flurry of kicks and punches at him, all of which he blocked with a speed greater than her own. "The fight is over Jill," Wesker said in between hits, none too pleased. "Cease your attack." She managed to ignore his command however, and continued hitting him.

"Impressive!" he said, deducing that her assault wasn't a flaw of the serum, but an act of sheer willpower. "You're using P30's strength and speed to your advantage but suppressing its control tendencies." Jill didn't respond, keeping all of her concentration on landing blows. She had no doubt that if he managed to break her chain of attack, her adrenaline would clear and the serum would regain control.

"I'd say your speed nearly rivals my own. However..." Wesker caught her by the neck and slammed her down on the ground, flat on her back. The wind was completely knocked out of her, taking all of her fight with it. Wesker put his foot on her chest, holding her in place. "You're always full of surprises Jill," he said, taunting her. He leaned over, putting his weight on her, and her hands flew to his boot to try to take some of the pressure off of her chest.

"But I don't really like surprises. I prefer to stay one step ahead of the game." He kept the pressure on her chest for a moment, watching her struggle beneath him. Then, he removed his foot, and bent down to drag her to her feet by her collar. Lifting her up and bringing her face close to his, he said, "You should remember that if you'd like me to let you live."

"I'd rather die..." Jill said, struggling to speak. "Than be your puppet... _captain_." Wesker frowned at her response, then threw her across the room into the wall. She cried out upon impact, and sank to the floor.

"It's a shame that mouth of yours is so dead set against self preservation Jill," he said, casually walking over to her. Jill struggled to at least sit up before he reached her. "Since the genes in your own body are so much better at it than any other subject I've worked with." He grabbed her by the back of her collar and started dragging her across the room to the door.

Jill was utterly worn out from fighting the serum. She wanted to remark that his victims wouldn't have used the phrase 'worked with', but she could barely even raise her arms at this point. She just collapsed and let him haul her out of the testing area without any struggle.

"No reply Jill?" Wesker asked as he dragged her down the hall. "Are you finally deciding to behave and make things easier on yourself?"

"No." she responded firmly. Jill felt glad that she was at least able to make her refusal _not_ sound like it was coming from a dying animal. Wesker glanced down at her with a smirk as he made their way down the corridor.

"Good," he said, approaching a steel door. "I enjoy punishing you." He opened it to reveal a holding cell fit for one. He then picked Jill up and shoved her into the small room, where she fell to the floor against the bed. Wesker moved to shut the door but paused when she spoke.

"I was cold," she said, trying to keep any groans of pain from her voice. Wesker furrowed his brow.

"What?" he asked.

"I wasn't trembling," she said, slowly climbing to her feet. "I was shivering. You had me standing in a freezing lab in my underwear." He didn't respond, and just gave her a cold stare before shutting the door and locking her in. As he walked back down the corridor however, he allowed himself a small secret smile.

"Had enough of your action figure Albert?" Excella called from the other end of the hallway. Wesker wiped away any semblance of an expression from his face at the sound of her voice.

"The testing for today is completed," he answered, approaching her at the other end of the hall. "P30 shows incredible promise, but is unsustainable for any useful amount of time. I was thinking a device to administer injections at regular intervals was in order, perhaps even deliver a shock when she resists the serum."

"Hmm," Excella mused thoughtfully. Wesker walked past her and began to make his way back to the lab when she said, "I think I'll go pay the subject a visit."

"Why?" he asked, turning around at her remark.

"Why...?" she repeated, a hint of incredulity on the fringes of her voice. "Why not? I'm a scientist just as you are, I wanted to ask some questions." Wesker nodded slowly, as if just realizing the answer was obvious. He then turned back around and left Excella standing alone in the hallway. She was not pleased.

Making her way to the door of Jill's cell, she slid the peephole open to peer inside. Jill was sitting on the bunk, and had pulled her feet up onto the bunk and buried her face in her knees, her arms wrapped tightly around her legs. _Coming to terms with her situation, hm?_ Excella thought. "Jill Valentine," she called through the small slot. "Your reputation precedes you." When Jill didn't even so much as lift her head, Excella huffed.

"Things could be worse you know," she goaded. "You should feel honored to even be allowed to live, especially with all the preparation we have to do." Jill looked up at her then, a thoroughly pathetic look in her eyes. Excella couldn't help but to smirk. "That's right," she continued. "Toying with one guinea pig is so inconsequential when we have the rest of the world to worry about." Jill just offered her a befuddled expression before putting her head back down and sighing.

Excella grit her teeth. Wesker actually felt compelled to waste his time on this pitiful woman when Uroboros needed tending to? She unlocked the door to the cell and stepped inside, shutting it soundly behind her. Jill didn't move from her spot. "So you're only human after all Jill?" Excella began, slowly walking over to her. "Humans are weak, pathetic creatures, undeserving of the complacency so many are settled in." She stopped and stood beside Jill. "Aren't you grateful that you'll no longer have to associate with them?" She looked at Jill's huddled form with contempt.

"You forget..." Jill mumbled, causing Excella to instinctively lean closer. Jill's hand shot out and grabbed Excella by the hair, pulling hard. She slowly stood up as Excella cried out and writhed in pain in her firm grasp. "That you're _only_ human as well." Jill slammed the other woman to the floor, and ran to the door, flinging it open. Before she could even make it across the threshold however, she was hit hard in the chest, stumbling back into the cell.

"Commendable Jill," Wesker said, stepping into the small room. "But utterly predictable." He glanced to Excella, who was pushing herself up off the floor. "Get out," he commanded flatly. She didn't need to be told twice. She scrambled up and out the door, slamming it behind her. Wesker turned his attention back to Jill and crossed his arms across his chest. "Just what am I going to do with you Jill..." he asked. Jill's fists were clenched in anger.

"You could make things easier on both of us and let me go," she said. He flat out laughed at her at that.

"And when have I ever done things the easy way?" he asked, putting his hands on his hips.

"Oh I forgot, you prefer your plans to be overly convoluted and nearly nonsensical," she spat, clearly mocking him.

"Mind your tongue Jill," he said, taking a menacing step towards her. "Or I'll mind it for you." Her eyes widened at this, and a slow smirk crawled across his face. Leaving her to ponder any hidden meaning behind his last statement, he left the cell, slammed the door, and locked it behind him.

Jill sighed loudly in frustration as she fell back onto her bunk, running a hand through her hair. Unsure if there might be any hidden cameras in the cell, she decided to err on the side of caution and discreetly tucked away into the sleeve of her battle suit her newly gained prize: Excella's hairpin.

* * *

**Big thank you to those of you that reviewed. I love hearing your thoughts on my writing, good or bad, so don't hold back!**


	3. Chapter 3

The passage of time was lost to Jill in her cell. She had no way of knowing whether it was either night or day, only that she fell asleep from exhaustion at some point and was woken up by Wesker barging into her cell an indeterminate amount of time later. He escorted her to the lab area where she was handcuffed to the table again, where he left her entirely. She suspected the only reason he came to fetch her in the first place was because he figured she would manage to escape from anyone else. But today, Excella was the one to be administering any tests, and she could tell from the vengeful look on the woman's face that Wesker would seem compassionate in comparison.

Jill made sure not to waste any time. While Excella's back was turned for getting any instruments ready before administering the serum, Jill deftly picked the lock on one of her hand restraints using the hairpin she had snagged the day before. It was a standard lock, and she was able to quickly move to her other hand and then her feet before a single minute had passed. She sprung from the table, and being as stealthy as she could, she snuck up behind Excella and decked her on the back of the had, causing her to pass out instantly. Jill allowed herself a victorious smile for an instant, before she broke off at a run out of the lab, to try to find her way out of the ominous facility.

* * *

Excella came to a short time later, rubbing the back of her head tenderly. She looked over to the lab table in a panic, finding that Jill had indeed escaped. _Oh no..._ she thought. She could only imagine the magnitude of Wesker's... _disappointment_. She quickly climbed to her feet, and rushed over to the alarm button on the wall. Just before her hand came down on the button though, she paused. What if Jill _did _escape? Excella would be in trouble either way for letting Jill get away in the first place, but if she managed to actually get _out _of the facility, that would be one less thorn in her side. Excella dropped her hand from the button, walked back to the lab station, and busied herself with the equipment, pretending that nothing had gone wrong.

* * *

Jill sped along the catwalk as a handful of majini emptied their guns at her. She quickly dodged behind a large metal grate, and cursed her lack of good sense for not finding a weapon beforehand. Jill was no slouch when it came to hand to hand combat, in fact she was quite sure she would be able to handle any number of hired goons she came across if she could get close enough. But if she could get hold of a knife of some sort, she would be on a whole other level of deadliness. Sure, a gun would be even better, but she didn't want to set her hopes too high. Looking at things realistically, her chances of escaping this place entirely weren't very good. But she would be damned if she didn't try.

Jill held very still as she heard a majini approaching. When it turned the corner to apprehend her, she backhanded it as hard as she could in the head. It dropped the stun rod it was preparing to swing at her, and Jill dove for it. She was uncovered for a moment by the action, and a machine gun started firing wildly in her direction before she scrambled back behind the metal grate. The first majini she had downed was now getting back up, and Jill swung the stun rod hard into its torso, sending it right back down again.

She waited for the sound of reloading coming from behind her to dart between any bit of cover she could find, bringing herself face to face with the majini wielding the machine gun. Jill thrust the stun rod directly into its face, causing it to explode in a mess of organic matter. _Yuck... Their bones must be really brittle,_ she thought. She retrieved the machine gun from the body and checked it for ammo.

One clip. Sighing, she slung the machine gun onto her back, deciding to save it for later. A third majini she didn't know had been lurking around the corner pounced on her then, grabbing her by the neck in a painful grip and causing her to drop the stun rod. She struggled in its grasp for a moment, before bringing her arm around and boxing the thing hard on the ear. It dropped her then, at which point she regained her fallen weapon and once again aimed for the head. Its head broke apart, just like the last, but instead of falling dead to the floor, a grotesque centipede-like creature emerged from the neck.

"What the hell?!" she shouted, jumping back as far as she could in a single leap. The creature spasmed and hissed, swinging itself around in an attempt to lash out at her. Jill frantically grabbed for the machine gun she had just picked up, and fired directly at the base of the monstrosity. It screeched unpleasantly, but kept coming, so Jill kept firing. When the thing finally went down, she checked her ammo reserves shakily, keeping one eye on the nightmarish corpse. Three bullets. Without giving it a second thought, she fired the last bullets at the creature, just to be safe.

Discarding the now useless machine gun and switching back to the stun rod, she continued down the catwalk to the room's exit, carefully checking around for any more enemies. She paused when she came upon the first major door, not because of its size, but because of its reflection. _I'm...blond...?_ she thought. How did that happen? Was Wesker trying out hair dyes on her while she slept?

No, it must have been the side effect of all his testing. She touched the image of her face in the door for a moment, unnerved by her new appearance. With her dark attire and blond hair, she had become more like Wesker, all she needed was a pair of dark sunglasses to complete the look. In a way, he had effectually left his mark on her, branding her like cattle. She wondered what other experiments he performed on her, what other changes had been brought about from abuses to her body. The realization that she would never be the same after this very suddenly and painfully dawned on her. She could only hope that she was still human.

Shaking her head angrily and passing though the door, she came into an enormous room, covered with capsules on every side, continuing up into a tower high up above her. The sterile, bright white environment felt utterly soulless, as she was sure anyone willing to experiment on people this way must certainly be. There was a large command console situated on the column in the center, and she rushed over to it to try to gleam any sort of information. It was a complex system, but it strangely wasn't password protected and she was able to access all the major files. They apparently didn't get many visitors.

"Uroboros..." she murmured aloud, reading off of the screen. Her eyes widened in horror as she read the details of the project, and what Wesker had planned. The majority of the human race would be wiped out if he wasn't stopped, the survivors forced to evolve by the spread of a horrible new B.O.W. This was more than just eugenics, Wesker was playing god.

She _had_ to escape, she had to warn the B.S.A.A.... Jill knew that there was no way she could take down Wesker by herself. If only Chris were here! But no, he was no more effective at battling Wesker than she was, and even together they were unable to so much as scratch him. She was utterly alone in this, against ludicrous odds, and yet unable to just give up. She had to be strong. There would be no one to save her from zombie dogs, no one to help her out of traps, and no one to find antidotes for her if she was infected. It was just her... and she would make do.

She located the switch to activate the elevator and pressed it, sending the platform slowly spiraling upwards. She got into the prone position, very aware of how vulnerable to gunfire she was out on the open aired platform, but surprisingly, none came. In fact, resistance on the whole had been pleasantly minimal, as if they didn't know she was escaping. She hadn't hit Excella that hard, surely she must be awake by now. Why were hordes of enemies not coming down on her from all directions? Though Jill supposed she should thank her good luck that she hadn't been already been killed, and that perhaps it was better not to question it. And really, though she most certainly did not want to remain in Wesker's captivity for any amount of time, it was by only incredible good luck that she was even alive at all. It was luck that allowed her to survive that fall from the window, luck that Wesker didn't leave her for dead or kill her off in her sleep, and luck that she had been able to fight particularly well in every encounter since her awakening.

She wondered if Chris had been so lucky. Obviously he wasn't the one that had fallen out the window so he surely survived the Spencer estate, but what had he been doing since then? Did he try to find her? She knew he must have, but that Wesker must have taken her away before they had begun searching. He must think she was dead, if that was the case, and moved on with his life. Jill had been out of commission for a long time. If she actually managed to get out of here, would she still have a life to go back to?

The elevator came to a stop at the top of the tower, and she crawled to her feet. Leaving the platform via catwalk and finding the exit, she opened the door and moved on to the next area. The hallway opened up into a rocky area, a sort of mix of the industrial facility and an underground cave. There were what looked like ruins carved into the wall opposite the entrance, on the far side of a short metal bridge. Where _was_ this place? She knew for sure now that it was subterranean, but she could be anywhere in the world. The chances of any allies happening upon the facility and finding her now went from minuscule to nonexistent.

Crossing the bridge, she came to another large room composed of antiquities and steel. Blocky columns to either side of her adorned the two story room, leading any visitors towards a dual staircase situated in the back. The room itself was wide open, and she felt a small bit of surprise that there was no one lying in wait with a surprise ambush. Discarding the notion, she bounded up the stairs and boarded the elevator at the top, hoping that her second elevator ride of the day would take her above the surface of the earth.

She was not disappointed. When she stepped out of the elevator, she was greeted with a nearly cloudless blue sky, at what she would guess was the late morning. She felt a swell of joy in her chest at the sight, and she realized that she may not have had any sunlight touch her skin in over a year. Running forward a bit, she observed the area, trying to discern any telling sign of where she could be. She seemed to be at a private harbor, with a moderately sized aircraft carrier docked at the port. There were a few smaller boats anchored beside it, and upon catching sight of them she had her escape plan. There was still no way of discerning where she was geographically however, so she would have to navigate carefully out of sight of any pursuers while keeping the shoreline on the horizon.

She ran down the nearest flight of stairs, during which the pain in her feet began to catch up with her. Though her trek from the lab was not terribly long, her shoes were certainly the culprit. _Figures a sadist like Wesker would make high heel boots standard attire for a battle suit..._ Jill thought to herself, reaching the bottom of the stairs and making a break for the dock across the harbor. But no, she didn't want to think about him. The incident at the Spencer estate felt like it happened only yesterday to her, and the last time she had seen him was during his sinister reveal as an Umbrella pawn at the Arklay mansion facility. Jill felt angry at herself for trusting him so blindly then, she had never suspected a thing. How could she? He was her captain. When she found him in the tyrant's lab she was half hoping it wasn't true, that there had been some mistake. But Wesker himself confirmed he was the culprit, smug to the very last. He had slapped her around a bit _then_ too... After the way he tossed her around the testing area yesterday, she suspected Wesker got a sort of perverse enjoyment from beating her up. Yet another reason for Jill to get the hell out of dodge.

Jill stopped running when she spotted a couple majini patrolling the harbor. Being out in the open like this, starting a fight with them meant risking being seen by someone else at a better vantage point. The area was littered with steel crates, so she would just have to sneak around them. It would slow her progress to the boats, and she now had to be extremely careful, but it was beginning to look like she could actually make it out of here. She gripped the stun rod with determination as she plotted a course. There had been no sign of Wesker during her escape, and she knew that if he had found out about her flight from the facility, it would all be over.

Years ago, when Chris told her that Wesker was alive, that he had even fought him, she didn't want to believe it. He was a betrayer, condemned to the deepest level of hell. How could he possibly escape that punishment when she saw him impaled with her own eyes? Only when she saw him herself, with his unnatural strength and speed at the Spencer estate, did the notion really hammer home. What type of monster had he become to gain such abilities? Was any part of the aloof S.T.A.R.S. captain she was at one time familiar with still left? Was that persona ever even genuine to begin with? It was that part of him that she was once teammates with that truly bothered her the most. She had respected him, admired him, and though she would _never_ admit it to anyone, used to have a bit of a crush on him. Before... Before she became close with Chris, and before she learned of Wesker's true nature. It made his goading of her so much worse, that there was a hint of truth behind it. She was slightly relieved that she couldn't react in that chilling moment in her undergarments, for fear that he would see through her facade and learn the dark and terrible truth. Humiliation indeed.

Jill had reached the end of the labyrinth of crates, and all that lay before her was the open air of the long dock. The small boats floated invitingly at the end, whispering promises of freedom as the waves slapped against their hulls. Jill hesitated for a moment. She couldn't see any of the harbor behind her other than the small alcove of crates she currently stood in, so there was no way to be sure that there were no majini nearby. Glancing longingly back at the boats, she decided to risk it. There would be no safe way to make it out there, so she would just have to make a run for it.

Taking a few deep breaths, she put a firm grasp on the stun rod to not drop it while running, and broke off in a sprint down the dock. The air rushed to her face as her feet pounded on the concrete, running as fast as she possibly could to her escape vessel. She was about halfway down the dock when a dark blur sped by her on her left, and came to a stop directly ahead of her.

It was Wesker.

"Oh no..." Jill breathed, skidding to a stop and very nearly colliding with him.

"Oh yes..." he mimicked, reacting instantly to kick the stun rod out of her hand and into the water. Jill jumped back to dodge his next attack.

"It seems I have underestimated you Jill," Wesker said, standing up straight. "You're turning out to be quite a bit more resourceful than I had previously anticipated."

"Tch," Jill replied, doing her best to hide the utter despair she was feeling at being stopped so close to freedom. "I know what you plan to do with Uroboros Wesker."

"Is that so?" he asked. "Then where are you running off to? Intent on rejoining the ranks of lesser beings?"

"Lesser beings? _I'm_ a human being!" she yelled, her desperation threatening to boil over, dulling the voice in her head that warned her to keep cool. "If my choices are to die with the rest of the human race, or stay here and watch you kill it I'd rather die!" Wesker lowered his head and smirked, walking slowly towards her.

"Oh, but you won't..." he said smoothly. "You're _immune_ to Uroboros. If you grade your humanity by your own measure of frail mortality then you already lost it." He performed a low-spin kick, sweeping Jill off of her feet. When he moved to grab her, she rebounded with a backflip. "Because when everyone around you falls due to weaknesses of their own bodies, you alone will be left standing."

"What...?" she muttered quietly, backing inwards towards the harbor. "How? What have you done to me!"

"Your own DNA made you this way Jill. You have already evolved." Wesker said. "I merely borrowed some of that strength of yours to further my own research." He took a quick swipe at her, but Jill dodged, slowly trying to sidestep around him. "The antibodies from your own body gave birth to Uroboros. _You_ will be the mother of the next evolution of the human race."

"Stop it!" she screamed. "Just shut up!" Jill finally attacked then, charging at him to punch him in the head as hard as she could. The hit landed, and his sunglasses flew from his face to clatter noisily on the ground.

Jill was unable suppress an audible gasp. She had never seen Wesker without his sunglasses in all the time that she had known him, but she was never expecting the demonic orange eyes that glared back at her now, unfazed by her attack. The fire she felt suddenly turned to fear.

"Human beings are not _worthy_ of compassion," Wesker simply said, continuing to provoke her. "Reject them, and accept your role as the new goddess of creation."

"No!" she shouted, aggressively waving the notion away in an attempt to keep any shakiness from her voice. "My humanity is a virtue, not a weakness. If you had any of yours left maybe you'd be able to understand that!"

"Now why would I want to keep my humanity," Wesker asked. "When I can have power instead." He suddenly moved faster than Jill could see and slammed hard into her chest, sending her flying backwards into a steel crate. "Hmph," he scoffed, bending down to retrieve his sunglasses and placing them neatly back onto his face. Jill struggled to stand back up on shaky legs. There was no way she would be able to defeat him like this. He was just too fast, and too strong. She had to think of something else, and she had to do it now.

"Your humanity can't save you now Jill," Wesker said, leisurely walking towards her. "You have to be something more if you want to stand a chance against me." Jill didn't respond. She crouched down in preparation, her feet far apart. When he was only a few yards away from her, she rushed at him, making to attack, then spun around and to the back of him when he attempted to block her. She fled down the dock towards the end, putting whatever remaining energy she had left into running. As she predicted, he once again sped past her to block her path. He crouched low, planting his feet, in anticipation of her trying to dodge by him once again. Jill did not change her course, and when she reached him, instead of trying to go around him, she put her hands on his shoulders, spread her legs wide, and hurdled _over_ him. She hit the ground running behind him and took off, continuing towards her destination.

Wesker appeared before her once more, this time standing slightly to the left and put his arm out to catch her across the neck. She reacted quickly by putting her hands up and swung off of his arm, sliding beneath him to roll back into a standing position. She was just a few feet from the end now. Jill spun around and broke into a run once more, closing the distance between her and the water and leaped as far as she could.

Time seemed to slow down in that instant as she hung in the air. She felt butterflies in her stomach as she headed down, hoping that if she could at least make it to the water she would have a more level playing field. The vast expanse of sparkling blue consumed her field of vision, and she could practically taste the salty sea water. All too quickly however, she found an arm snaking its way around her waist, pulling her back towards land and captivity.

Wesker had caught her in midair, pulling her up against him and wrapping his other arm tightly around her neck. "No!" Jill cried out, frantically thrashing against his hold on her. Wesker tightened his grip as she struggled, before he hit her on the back of the head, knocking her out completely. He scooped up her limp body as she fell to the floor, and began making his way back to the lab with Jill in tow.

* * *

Jill was experiencing that swaying sensation again. The last time she felt that way she was in incredible pain. But now, other than what felt like a few various bruises, it was mostly just her neck that was hurting. She groggily attempted to bring a hand to her face, but found that her arms were pinned to her sides. Jill lifted her head from the painful angle it was hanging at and slowly opened her eyes, adjusting to the shifting light to try to see where she was. Her heart dropped into her stomach when she identified Wesker's face above her, stoically looking forward. Her mind was still foggy, but she made an attempt to figure out what was going on. The swaying, her neck being sore, and her arms pinned to her sides... Jill's eyes widened in shock with the realization that he was carrying her. She began writhing and kicking as hard as she could in an attempt to get him to drop her. Jill didn't care if she landed flat on her butt, she just didn't want him holding her. Instead of dropping her however, he tightened his grip painfully on her, squeezing the air out of her lungs.

"Stop struggling or I'll break your arms," he said, not even bothering to look down at her. "...and your ribs," he added for good measure. Jill had no doubt that he would follow through with his threats, and she would have very much liked to keep her bones unbroken so she could make another escape attempt. So for the moment, she did not fight against him, and relaxed her body, hanging her head back once again. The pain shooting through her neck at the motion however, was a clear sign that she was sore from the position, and would continue hurting if she stayed that way. As much as she was loathe to do so, she released a small sigh of defeat, and rested her head against Wesker's arm. He turned his head to look at her then, but she would not meet his gaze. Instead she was taking in their surroundings, realizing that they were already in one of the gray hallways of the laboratory area, so easily undoing all the progress she had made earlier.

The thought suddenly occurred to her that she may not get another chance to escape. She had been causing quite a bit of trouble ever since she woke up, and it was likely that Wesker had finally had enough of it and was just going to kill her. But if that was the case, why didn't he just kill her out on the dock? He could even have just held her head underwater if he didn't feel like exerting himself. Maybe he had some sort of terrible torture device set up in the lab somewhere and he was saving a particularly sinister death for her. She definitely wouldn't put it past him.

"Are you going to kill me?" she asked quietly.

"...I caught the fish before she could swim away, so I'm going to fry her up for dinner now. Is that what you're thinking?" he asked dryly. Jill snorted disdainfully at his response.

"From a goddess to a fish," she remarked. "I can only imagine how hard that Exella works to stay in _your_ good graces."

"I thought you wanted no part of my good graces," he said.

"Just answer the question," Jill said irately. She knew when she was being toyed with.

"No, I'm not going to kill you," Wesker replied, entering the lab. "That humanity of yours on the other hand..."

* * *

**This chapter came very naturally to me, and I'm really happy with the result. It would have continued further, but it was already quite long, so the scene will continue next chapter from Wesker's POV. And again, thanks to everyone that reviewed!**


	4. Chapter 4

Jill lay restrained to the examining table, quietly resigned after having failed to escape. Wesker was at the lab station, selecting a few instruments that he would need, as well as a small notepad and pen for notes. Bringing them over and setting them on the table, he began using a caliper to measure the flat of her chest, just above her sternum. Jill squirmed a little, clearly uncomfortable.

"...what are you doing?" she asked.

"You're quite effective when under P30's spell," Wesker said, pausing to write down a measurement. "So I'm fashioning a device that will administer regular injections to ensure that it doesn't wear off. And since you seem so _determined_ to keep your free will, it will also deliver an electrical shock any time you try to fight it, ensuring a break in your concentration." Jill was silent for a moment as he took another measurement.

"So you _are_ going to kill me then," she said quietly. "My body will be alive so you can have my precious DNA at your disposal, but _me_... I'll be gone." Wesker looked at her face, considering what she said.

"…yes," he replied, turning his attention back to the caliper. "Though you seem to be aware of what's going on when you're not in control, so it's really more like life in prison rather than a death sentence. That prison just happens to be your own body." He glanced at her face again, then paused. Jill's lips were pressed tightly together in a thin line, her brow was furrowed, and her eyes closed. He brought his caliper up for inspection for a second before putting it back down. He didn't think he had hurt her.

Wesker took a step closer, and noticed that she had let a single tear escape from underneath her eyelid, and it had stalled on her cheekbone on it's way down the side of her head. He stared at it intently. This woman, with such a strong will and relentless determination, still couldn't help a show of weakness in front of her greatest enemy. But that was the nature of humanity: weakness.

To have developed a resistance to nearly everything he could throw at her, Jill had become what was perhaps the strongest thing the human race had to offer. But she was still anchored down by her own humanity. Though unlike him, she refused to sever the line to that anchor, no matter how much more powerful it would make her. For a fleeting moment, Wesker saw his own lost humanity reflected in that tear.

It bothered him.

He reached over to her face and brushed the droplet away. The look she gave him was one of confusion and hatred. Wesker didn't see it however, as he was looking at the bit of moisture left on his glove before wiping it away on a nearby cloth. When he turned his attention back to her, Jill had completely regained her composure, her face a mask of stone as she stared off into mid distance. He couldn't help but smile at her expression. _That_ was strength.

Wesker finished up his measurements and returned back to the lab station. When Jill spoke, he almost didn't hear her.

"What color were your eyes?" she asked, still staring up at nothing. "Before... When you were captain of S.T.A.R.S.?"

"Why?" he asked, looking up from his work. Though he made it sound more like a demand than a question.

"I don't know..." she replied. A long pause of silence passed between them.

"Blue," he said eventually, once again turning his attention away from her. Yes, they were blue, like Jill's. And now her hair was blond, like Wesker's. He knew she must be drawing parallels between them, figuring that the stronger she got, the closer she became to being like himself. He supposed he could go off on a long monologue about how '_We're not so different, you and I...'_ or how her transformation into Wesker Lite was inevitable. It was something she clearly didn't want. Neither did he actually, but he wasn't entirely sure why...

* * *

Wesker had precious little free time, but since operations were running smoothly, and Jill would need to rest before any more tests or training, he decided to take the opportunity to get some sleep himself. After kicking off his boots, he pulled off his well-worn gloves, and tossed them onto the nightstand. He walked to the far corner of the room to his wardrobe, unzipped and removed his shirt, and tossed it into the hamper. He groaned a bit as he rotated his shoulders, stretching out the muscles. He was interrupted by the sound of the door closing softly behind him. Excella knew better than to ever disturb him in his room. That left only one person...

"There are no windows you can throw me out of here Jill," Wesker said, slowly turning around. "Do you really think you can defeat me otherwise?" Jill glared back at him with a look of utmost determination, holding a knife in one hand down by her side. Wesker wondered where she got that. Or for that matter, how she got out in the first place.

"If I try to escape, you'll just hunt me down and fight me once I've tired myself out from running," she said. "I have a much better chance if I take you out here and now."

"Sound reasoning Jill," Wesker replied. "But that doesn't make you any less outmatched."

"You'll just have to kill me then," she stated flatly.

"Hmm, that just won't do," he argued, crossing his arms across his bare chest. "I had such high hopes for your future. How about we make a deal so no one has to die?" Jill turned her head warily, her interest clearly piqued. "If you can pin me for three seconds, then I'll let you leave unhindered," he offered.

"No majini?" she asked.

"None. But if I can pin you for five seconds..." Wesker paused, trying to think of a suitable trade-off. "Well, I can already make you do whatever I please with P30, so we'll cross that bridge when we come to it," he finished.

"You expect me to agree to such nebulous terms?" she asked angrily.

"It's the best offer you're going to get," he said, laying out the ultimatum. "Either accept, or I'll drag you right back to your cell without breaking a sweat."

"Fine," she said, raising her knife to get into a defensive stance.

"Weapons?" he stated incredulously. "Honestly Jill." He dashed forward with his incredible speed, and slammed her hand into wall behind her, causing her to drop the blade. "You shouldn't bring a knife to a god fight," he said in a low voice. She practically growled at him in response. Using the wall for leverage, she kicked him back with as much force as she could muster, which was considerable. He fell backwards into a desk, knocking a halogen lamp to the floor. Wesker frowned at it as he straightened back up, he didn't know he even owned a lamp.

"Speed isn't everything you know," Jill said, coming at him from the right with a hard punch to the ribs, before dodging to his left and kicking him in the chest. She was keeping her moves unpredictable in an attempt to surprise him, knowing that he would be able to dodge any move he could expect in any way. It worked for a couple of blows, but for her next swing Wesker caught her arm before it could hit him, and flipped her over onto her back.

"You're right," he said, twisting her arm painfully. "But it certainly is useful." Crying out in pain, she swung her other arm out and pulled his foot out from underneath him, throwing off his balance and causing him to let go of her arm. She leapt to her feet and backed away, dancing from foot to foot, and watching him with a calculating expression. Wesker stalked around her, measuring her attack pattern.

"What are you thinking Jill?" he asked, slowly moving closer. She smirked, as if she knew something he didn't.

"Dance first, think later," she replied, shortly before leaping at him. She landed slightly to his right, then ducked down behind him and kicked up at his back. Wesker did not go down however, but rather quickly turned around to face her and managed to grab hold of both of her wrists. He pulled her arms far apart, bringing her closer to him.

"We've done this dance already," he said with a wicked grin. "Don't you think it's time to take our courtship to the next level?" He then tossed her backwards into the wardrobe, where she left a Jill sized hole behind her.

"Tch," Jill said, climbing away from the broken wood. "I knew you got your kicks out of brutalizing others Wesker." She began circling around him, trying to make the best use of what little space there was in the bedroom.

"Only when my opponent is able to keep up with me," he said, rushing forwards and making an attempt to grab her. Jill skirted to his side, jumping just out of reach and crouched low.

"Well _I _prefer an opponent that knows when to stay down," she replied, dropkicking him to the ground and flipping herself into a standing position.

"Certainly!" Wesker practically barked. "The floor is quite comfortable, won't you join me?" He swung his legs out past hers, sweeping her feet out from beneath her. Jill fell nearly on top of him, but he maneuvered out of the way so that when she hit the ground, he pounced on top of her instead, pinning her to the floor. "Got you!"

"Don't..." she said, obviously gearing up for an attack. "Be so... _cocky_!" Wesker rolled away just in time to escape a knee to the groin. As she jumped up and bounded backwards, Wesker brought himself up onto one knee and leered at her.

"Determined to face any hardship head on, eh Jill?"

With a sly smirk she said, "If you recall _captain_, I was the _rear_ security officer of S.T.A.R.S."

"Our team always did have an excellent rear," he remarked, standing up and slowly backing her into a corner. Just realizing she had nearly backed into the desk, Jill smashed the fallen lamp at her feet with her boot, and yanked off the lengthy cord from the base. She then cracked the cord like a whip, and moved into an offensive stance.

"There's nothing quite as lovely as the next step of evolution exhibiting her talents," he goaded. She lashed out hard with her makeshift whip, snapping him across the chest and forcing him to step back.

"I could go all night," Jill replied, sneering him.

"Oh I'm sure we could think of something better to do with our time than fighting," Wesker said, ogling her smugly.

"I'm partial to tie-me-up games myself," she remarked, just before running right up to him and wrapping the cord around him so that his arms were pinned to his chest. She tightened it mercilessly, before Wesker gave her a chastising shake of his head and brought his arms up, snapping the cord.

"I'm more than willing to accommodate you," he said, retrieving the half of the cord Jill didn't have firmly in her grasp. Ducking behind her, he served Jill a taste of her own medicine and tied her hands behind her back.

"I never knew you were such a giving partner!" she countered, kicking away and turning to face him, struggling to free her hand as fast as she could. Wesker ducked his head and smiled at her, casually strolling nearer. At the last second, Jill managed to remove the cord from around her hands and swung it frantically at him. Her movements were imprecise though, and he managed to catch the cord around his arm and pull her closer.

"Enough foreplay!" he growled, ripping the cord from her grasp and tossing it aside. He then wrapped one arm around her waist, brought his other hand up to grip the back of her head, and pulled her in for a forceful kiss.

Jill was completely frozen for quite a long moment, too stunned to move as Wesker worked his jaw against hers. He took full advantage of her hesitation, deepening the kiss and drinking as much of her in as he could. When she finally regained her senses, she pushed him back hard on the chest.

"What are you doing!?" she yelled, her voice at an uncomfortably high pitch and her wide eyes filled with confusion. Wesker touched his lips with a smirk, gazing at her from behind his sunglasses.

"I'm sorry, did you think all that banter was just euphemisms for fighting?" he said smoothly. "I was being quite sincere." Jill could do little but shake her head in disbelief, before Wesker took a step forwards. His proximity snapped her back into action, and she began punching him vigorously. She seemed to be visibly shaken however, as Wesker was able to easily block all incoming attacks. He began to walk closer to her, causing her to back up, despite her being the one doing the attacking. Jill then realized that he was successfully intimidating her into a corner, and retaliated with a viscous kick. He still managed to bring up both arms to block it however, taking a step back.

After so many punches, she stopped her assault. "Why aren't you fighting back?" she asked, breathing heavily. Wesker took off his sunglasses and tossed them aside, where they fell to the floor alongside the discarded knife.

"Because..." he said, slowly closing in on her. "If I let you have your way with me..." He suddenly rushed at her, pinning her to the wall. "Then I get to have my way with you." He kissed her again, gently this time. Once more she was stunned into submission, making Wesker feel quite proud of his amorous abilities. She recovered much more quickly this time around however, and ducked out of his grasp.

Jill threw a flurry of punches at him, quick light attacks that were intended to make him back off more than to hurt him. He didn't even bother blocking this time, allowing her to hit him. Instead he absorbed each hit, waiting for her to tire herself out. Jill eventually did stop attacking, her face bearing an expression of utter bewilderment.

He parted his lips and gave her a look that even Wesker himself wasn't sure was intended to portray. It was not his usual condescending glare or smug smile, but rather a confusing mix of desire and anger, of acceptance and impatience. Complicated was an understatement. Jill set her jaw firmly and swallowed hard.

"Aaaarrgh!" she yelled in frustration, kicking off of the wall to flat out launch herself at him. Taking him by surprise, she latched her legs around his waist, grabbed his head with both hands, and kissed him furiously. He stumbled backwards, until his back was up against the opposite wall. He recovered quickly though, and responded to her assault with equal fervor, wrapping both his arms tightly around her.

Jill was quite an aggressive kisser. In fact, the way she would occasionally bite him made Wesker wonder if she was still attacking him, just using a different tactic from before. It would certainly be an effective way to even the odds... Jill was more than a match for him in this arena, and Wesker found himself unable to think straight with her thighs wrapped around him in such a way. It was one battle Wesker wouldn't mind losing. But admitting defeat would also mean having to let her go unhindered, and he definitely didn't want that. Not after such a pleasing turn of events.

After a delirious session of feverish kissing, he pried her off of him, and threw her onto the bed. She made to sit up, but he pushed her back down, climbing on top of her. He turned his attention to her neck, pressing the full length of his body up against her. Apparently she had discarded her gloves somewhere along the way, because she was clawing his back in a lascivious manner. After about five seconds had passed, he paused to whisper in her ear.

"Pinned you..." he said. She responded only by punching him hard in the ribs and giving him a dirty look, before pulling him back down to her mouth for another kiss.

Wesker was not the most generous person in these sorts of situations. He knew what he wanted, and he went for it. The enthusiastic noises coming from Jill at his administrations were more than encouraging however. He was suddenly very grateful that Jill's battlesuit had been equipped with a full length zipper, and made use of it, tearing the outfit apart in the process. He would have to remember to get stronger material next time.

The notion that what was currently going on made no sense passed briefly through his mind, before he dismissed the thought. It not only felt good, it felt _right_, as if he was an idiot for not doing this sooner. He found himself wondering if things would have turned out differently if he had paid more mind to Alpha Team's rear security officer, instead of single-mindedly furthering his own dogged ambition through Umbrella. Would his plans have turned out differently? Would _he_ have turned out differently? His attention was brought back to the matter at hand when he realized Jill was fumbling with his belt.

If the past order of events where what brought him to this moment, Wesker had no complaints.

* * *

**I found it really difficult to describe what kind of look Wesker was giving Jill in that pivotal moment. Luckily this screenshot from thethedarkid's Lets Play Resident Evil 0 portrays it perfectly: http:// img7. imageshack. us /img7 /8999 /weskerq. jpg (Paste the link in the address bar and remove the spaces.)**

**Stay tuned for the final chapter, featuring flashforwards to tie up loose ends! And of course, many thanks for reviews!**


	5. Chapter 5

Wesker awoke with a dull ache in his chest. Bringing the back of his hand up to his eyes, he made an attempt to rub the residual sleep away. When his mind had cleared, he sat up suddenly, and darted his eyes around the room.

It was in perfect order. His wardrobe was unharmed, and taking stock of the spartan décor, he realized that he never had a lamp in his room, or a desk for that matter. Turning his gaze back to the bed, he confirmed that he was indeed the sole occupant. An occupant that was still half dressed.

_...Was it all just a dream?_

Wesker bounded out of bed and threw on his clothes, very nearly forgetting his sunglasses before he left the room. He smoothed back his hair as he stalked through the facility, feeling annoyed that the laboratory area was so far from his own room. When he had finally made his way to her cell, he slid open the peephole and looked inside.

Jill was lying on the bunk, sleeping on her side with her back to the door. Her battlesuit was not torn in the slightest.

Of course it was a dream. Jill _voluntarily_ came to his room, and the whole situation was so ridiculously implausible that he was amazed he didn't realize it while he was sleeping. But he didn't have to think hard to figure out why. He didn't catch on during his slumber because he _wanted_ it to be real. Wesker gripped the the peephole in the door and turned his head away, pinching the bridge of his nose beneath his sunglasses with his thumb and forefinger.

When he heard a shuffling from within the cell, he turned his head back to see inside. Jill had rolled onto her back with one arm stretched out above her. Wesker's head was invaded with the mental image of the two of them... _associating_ intimately right there on her bunk when he caught sight of her. His hand running along her smooth thigh, her back arching wonderfully at his touch... Wesker turned his back to the door in an attempt to dispel the vivid imagery, and thought back to try to determine how he had become attracted to a woman he had intended to use for revenge.

Jill had successfully stopped him from killing Chris, managing to not die in the process. Then she had resisted his brutal viral assault, even granting him the power to effectively use Uroboros. And when she had woken up, she fought valiantly against P30, and very nearly escaped. He admired her tenacity, that he already knew. It just so happened that somewhere along the way, it had evolved into something more than just admiration. Evolution was unpredictable in that way.

That was a problem.

If his designs were to succeed, there must not be any unpredictable variables. He couldn't afford any distractions, especially ones that might lead to any unfortunate soul searching. He was at a far too crucial stage in his plans to be focused on anything more than reaching his goal. Jill must be removed from the equation.

The construction of the P30 device would take top priority for now, completely suppressing her personality and any questions she would raise about his humanity. Then he would hide her appearance, completely erasing her identity. A mask and cloak would do. He would also have to transfer her directly to Excella's service, where she would be out of sight and out of mind.

Given the effort it would take to maintain the status quo, he knew it would be easier just to kill her right out. But even Wesker had his principles, and it would hypocritical of him to kill one of the few people that could survive Uroboros, especially if that person was the one that made Uroboros possible in the first place. No, Jill would live to see the world reformed, Wesker would see to that himself. He briefly wondered if he was just making excuses, but quickly brushed it off and stuck to the principles reasoning instead.

* * *

Wesker and Excella watched from the observatory box as Jill bounded about the testing area below them. She had been doing various gymnastics with occasional short breaks for rest for about an hour now, and the P30 device was proving to work perfectly. She was being completely controlled, and not once was she able to put up enough resistance to fight back.

Excella looked over to Wesker's face, expecting to see a triumphant smirk. Instead he looked deathly serious, watching Jill's every move with a steady attention, his hands clasped behind his back. She found it unusual to say the least. He had finally completely conquered one of his oldest adversaries, and would no longer have to worry about her escaping. Not to mention the scientific significance of this breakthrough. Wesker should be positively jubilant and yet... nothing. Excella decided to test the waters.

"So it looks like you now have the perfect soldier Albert, one that will never question your orders or act against your will. What do you plan to do with this?" she asked him. She searched his face for a reaction, and he was quiet for so long that at first she didn't think he heard her. At last he spoke.

"Jill will be equipped with a mask and cloak to hide her identity. As a legally dead senior agent of the B.S.A.A. she will need to keep a low profile," he replied flatly. "Then I will be assigning her to you to use as you see fit. I suspect she will be more suited to activities on the surface instead of down here in the facility." Excella stared at him in disbelief, completely surprised by his answer. It appeared she didn't have to worry about Jill taking her place after all. But she suspected there was more to it than that.

"You do realize that if she should somehow manage to overcome the device I won't be able to contain her?" Excella asked. "She's already shown that she can handle the majini, and when she's above ground she'll have plenty of resources to make her escape."

"That won't happen", he firmly replied, not taking his eyes off of the action on the floor below.

"_Hypothetically _then," she stressed. "Have you thought about what to do if she got out?"

"If she's able to actually resist the device then she deserves to escape," Wesker said stoically. There was a slight resignation to his voice, as if he had lost interest in P30 entirely.

"Hm, so you're granting her freedom?" Excella posited in a patronizing tone. "That's very chivalrous of you..."

"What makes you so sure she's even capable of breaking its hold?" he asked, turning ever so slightly to face her.

"Because P30 kept her under control for a shorter amount of time with each new injection. She may not be able to fight it now..." she said, casting him a sidelong glance. "But she'll slowly develop a resistance, just like she has with everything else we've given her. Eventually she'll snap back in control. All she needs is time," Excella said, pausing for a moment to choose her words carefully. "And the right motivation." Wesker's face betrayed only the faintest hint of a frown.

"Then it's all the better that she be stationed with you," he replied. "There's no personal vendetta to fuel any motivation for her."

"I doubt she holds anything other than ill will for me," she remarked, crossing her arms and shifting her weight onto one foot.

"Whatever she feels for you is minuscule in comparison to what she feels for me," he countered. Excella quirked an eyebrow at his interesting choice of words.

"Is that the real reason you're not keeping her around?" she asked. She was purposely vague in her question, waiting to see how Wesker would interpret it.

"I don't have time to play with her anymore," he said, not even pausing to consider her question. "I can't have any distractions."

"Distractions?" Excella repeated huffily. "Seems to me leaving her alive would be distracting enough. It's quite a risk for you Albert."

"If you want her dead so badly Excella why don't you kill her yourself?" Wesker seethed, turning to face her. "She _will_ fight back of course. Her allegiance is to me, not you. But if you think you can defeat her then be my guest." Excella stood in stunned silence, her mouth agape for a moment, before she solidly shut it and refaced the window.

Wesker turned his attention back to the woman in the testing area beneath them. If Excella was still talking he didn't hear her, as he quickly lost himself in his own thoughts. She was right though. Jill would escape somehow. No matter how impossible it seemed, at some point, she would find a way. And this was how Wesker would set her free.

Perhaps he would see Jill again in the new world... When humanity was no longer something to be ashamed of, and only those strong enough to survive were left. When society was slowly rebuilding itself, and deserted shells of cities were the stage for the next life cycle of the human race. Maybe then, they could have a chance encounter.

Perhaps they would fight, though he wouldn't want it. Perhaps they would talk, though he didn't think it was likely. Perhaps they would simply stare each other down, not saying a word, before going their separate ways. Wesker doubted they could ever be allies again. Not with her strong attachment to humanity in the way. She would have only the desire for revenge in her heart for him.

Maybe he would grant her her vengeance. Allow her to pummel him as much as she could, to alleviate some of that desire. Of course, then he would kiss her, to alleviate some of his. Wesker involuntarily gripped the command console when he realized he was thinking about her inappropriately again. He needed to stop doing that...

The Jill down in the testing area below mindlessly following orders was not the same Jill from his dreams. And the Jill he might one day meet out in the world once his plan had come to fruition would not be the same Jill from his fantasies. Because that Jill did not exist. She may be every bit as determined and obstinate as the real Jill, but she would also forgive Wesker for everything he had ever done to her, thereby robbing her of some of that fire. The real Jill would never, ever grant him vindication.

Wesker wouldn't want it any other way.

* * *

Jill's entire body ached as she breathed deeply, her chest newly unconstricted. She felt compelled to get up, but forced herself to lie still, waiting until the last of the serum passed through her system. When she finally felt free of its effects, she slowly opened her eyes. Above her was Chris's concerned face, staring back down at her intently. It was the most beautiful thing she had ever seen.

Jill's relief was so great she almost wanted to cry. Not yet though, her resolve needed to remain strong until everything was truly over. And it would not be over until Wesker was stopped. After her requisite apologies for attacking Chris and his partner, Jill wasted no time in urgently stressing the need to confront him. If it was at all possible, Chris would succeed where Jill could not, though she would be able to assist him from behind the scenes. She knew her way around the facility very well by now, and she had access to information that may be of use.

Jill could not help Chris directly though, because she was unsure of what would happen if she did. Wesker had been her boss so to speak, for quite some time now. What if she had been so conditioned to serve him that she might still follow a direct order, serum or no? It was a disconcerting thought. She had finally gotten her free will back, and was utterly petrified of having it taken away again. But even if Wesker had no way of controlling Jill again, the fact remained that the idea of facing him scared her. It had become too personal.

This was evidenced by the flash of guilt that shot through her heart as she sent Chris on his way to track Wesker down. Jill supposed that any residual feelings of loyalty could be attributed to simply being used to it, as a force of habit rather than choice. But as she ran off alone through the facility to see if she could commandeer a chopper, she conceded that there was something more to it than that.

The man was all at once a mentor, a savior, and a partner, but above all, he was a hated enemy. And though the part of him she had sworn to defeat was definitely the most prominent aspect, she could not deny that the others existed.

As a mentor he guided her through countless missions along with the rest of the S.T.A.R.S. team. Though he was certainly not the friendliest person on the force, she got along well with him. Jill liked and respected him as a person. He was a captain she had no trouble getting behind. Until he betrayed and was responsible for the deaths of nearly all her teammates that is.

As a savior his role was not as clear to her. He had originally tended to her wounds after her fall from the Spencer estate as a means for exacting revenge on Chris. Then he had kept her alive during his experimentations because she had developed a resistance to the various viruses and her antibodies progressed the development of Uroboros. After that he had used P30 to transform her into a loyal super soldier, though she was unsure why. She was sure there were other subjects that he could have tested the serum on, subjects that would be more cooperative without a past history with him. And after all she had done to try to escape and warn the B.S.A.A. of his impending attack, there was absolutely no reason for him to keep her alive. She had survived this far entirely because of whatever favor he had bestowed upon her based off of some bizarre respect for her ability to _not die_.

As a partner, he took rather enthusiastically to using her abilities to his own ends. While Jill was reduced to stilted and somewhat robotic behavior under the serum, during a brawl she was granted an extra dose of vigor. They had fought side by side, complimenting each other's strengths and abilities. And though all the action was entirely out of Jill's control, they worked exceedingly well together, to the point that she had never been so in sync with a partner during a fight. It was odd that a relationship as discordant as theirs could become so harmonious on the battlefield.

But every single benign trait that Wesker possessed was irrevocably intertwined with his malicious side, which ultimately represented his true self. Yes, Wesker had shown small kindnesses or mercies to Jill, but they were minuscule in comparison to the monstrous crimes against humanity he had committed. He sought to extinguish countless lives in some insane quest to become a god. There was absolutely nothing that could excuse him for that, and as punishment, he must die.

Jill had faith in Chris. She knew he could defeat Wesker, and that he would kill him. Jill would find whatever way possible to help Chris succeed in that mission. But as she realized that she would never see Wesker again, she was suddenly struck by the desire to speak to him one last time. She had no notion whatsoever of what she wanted to say to him though. Would she damn him to hell, curse his name, and mock his decision to let her live? Jill had a strange feeling that she would be more civil than that however. A simple goodbye perhaps, the single word carrying endless condemnations and a few minor thanks.

In any case, Wesker would soon be gone, taking years of Jill's own life with him. Though she would never be the same again after her time spent with him, Jill knew that someday it would be put behind her. She was near the dawn of a new day, and looked forward to the next chapter of her life with renewed resolve. Wesker may have taken her past, but Chris had given her a future.

* * *

**This was as far as I could push Wesker/Jill before they slid totally out of character, but the dream sequence was a nice little '**_**what if**_**' I had to get out of my head. Because of this, I had to end the story on a bittersweet note, much like the end of RE5 for any Wesker fan. R.I.P. Wesker/Jill, you'll always be my favorite pairing. **

**Once again, much love to everyone that reviewed. You guys are really great! Thanks for reading!**


End file.
